The College Board of Trustees recently elected four new members: Jeanne Myerson ’75, Sheryl Walter ’78, Odile Disch-Bhadkamkar, and Julie Gosselink.

Myerson is a real estate industry leader with three decades of experience in commercial real estate investment. Most recently she served as CEO of the Americas region of the Urban Land Institute, an interdisciplinary research and education institute dedicated to leadership in land use and creating thriving communities worldwide. She founded The Belgrave Group, an independent consulting firm, in 2015.

Walter has worked in all three branches of the federal government for more than 25 years. She is general counsel of the administrative office of the U.S. Courts, the first woman to hold this position. During her time on Capitol Hill, she worked for then-Sen. Joe Biden Jr. and the late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan.

Disch-Bhadkamkar recently retired from Stanford University after 23 years in finance administration. Before joining Stanford she was a vice president at JP Morgan Chase & Co. in the corporate finance division. She and Neal Bhadkamkar are parents of Ishan Bhadkamkar ’13.

Gosselink is president, CEO, and chair of the Claude W. and Dolly Ahrens Foundation, which was established by her grandfather. She has worked for the Ahrens Foundation since 2001 and has served as a director for several other Grinnell organizations, including the Galaxy Youth Center, Grinnell Chamber of Commerce, Grinnell Regional Medical Center Foundation, Iowa Council of Foundations, and Mayflower Community Foundation.

Peter Calvert ’79, who was elected Alumni Council president for 2017–18, will serve as an ex-officio trustee. He works as executive director of Ethical Metalsmiths, an organization that leads jewelers and consumers in becoming informed activists for responsible mining, sustainable economic development, and verified, ethical sources of materials used in making jewelry.

The board re-elected Patricia Jipp Finkelman ’80 to a second term as board chair. She has been a member of the board since 1998 and a life trustee since 2014. The board also re-elected Barrett Thomas ’97 and Matthew Welch ’96 to new terms.

Trustees Anne Campbell Spence ’66 and Clinton Korver ’89 recently retired from the board. They both joined in 2001 and completed four terms each. Korver also served as board chair from 2011–15.

The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) notified Grinnell College by letter, dated July 28, 2017, that the Title IX complaint opened in July 2015 has been administratively closed. The notice stated: “OCR has determined that there are no systemic issues pending that warrant OCR continuing the investigation.”

“This, by no means, suggests our work is done,” says Angela Voos, chief of staff, vice president for strategic planning, and Title IX coordinator. “Nor is it a signal to stop any of our efforts in education, prevention, or response to sexual violence or misconduct. Rather, we will take this letter as encouragement about our efforts to date. In keeping with our commitment to these issues, we will continue to broaden our efforts to reduce the incidence of sexual misconduct while also expanding our work to address other forms of discrimination.”

Shuchi Kapila, professor of English, has been named assistant vice president for global education and senior global officer. She succeeds David Cook-Martín as head of the Institute for Global Engagement.

The institute, which was established in 2016, focuses on internationalizing Grinnell on multiple levels. Kapila describes the institute as a central node that facilitates conversations between the Office of Off-Campus Study, the Language Learning Center, departments and divisions, and external partners.

Kapila hopes to continue the excellent work that the institute has been doing with the Global Learning Program and course-embedded travel. She also plans to foster partnerships between faculty with expertise in different global regions in the service of comparative study.

“I’m excited to see more partnerships, more collaborations, more interdisciplinary, cross-divisional work,” says Kapila. “I’m excited to see how this will both support and transform our teaching.”

Cook-Martín left Grinnell in 2017 for a position with New York University Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.

This exhibition, featuring 47 paintings by 24 artists, showcases works from the Gond and Warli communities of central India, the Mithila region of Bihar, and the narrative scroll painters of West Bengal. Divided into four broad categories — Myth and Cosmology, Nature – Real and Imagined, Village Life, and Contemporary Explorations — the exhibition explores the breadth and variety of cultural traditions in India, revealing a dynamic aesthetic that remains deeply rooted in traditional culture, yet vitally responsive to issues of global concern.

Many Visions, Many Versions: Art from Indigenous Communities in India was organized by BINDU Modern Gallery and toured by International Arts and Artists, Washington, D.C.

Shanna G. Benjamin, associate dean and associate professor of English, is one of 45 mid-level administrators in higher education nationwide selected by the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) to participate in the 2017–18 Senior Leadership Academy.

The academy is designed to prepare prospective leaders to assume positions as the chief officers in any division in independent higher education.

“Professor Benjamin’s breadth of experience, including work in inclusive teaching and learning, mentoring, and development, make her especially well-suited for this opportunity,” says Michael E. Latham, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the College.

Benjamin looks forward to merging her theoretical work in the academy with her practical work in the dean’s office. “I am honored to be part of such an energetic and diverse group of up-and-coming leaders,” she says.

Benjamin will undertake a mentoring program, work with experts, participate in webinars and engage in a series of readings and case studies during the academic year, as well as participate in opening and closing seminars.

Benjamin is a literary critic and biographer who studies the literature and lives of black women. Her term as associate dean at Grinnell began in January 2017.

Shonda Kuiper, professor of mathematics and statistics whose work in statistics education is nationally recognized, recently received a $300,000 grant from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE) program.

The grant project, titled “Student Engagement in Statistics Using Technology: Making Data Based Decisions,” will enable Kuiper and her team to develop inquiry-based, online games that simulate data-based decision-making embedded in a research-like experience.

Kuiper says these inquiry-based games will help students understand and apply concepts from statistics and data science as they work with complex, “messy” datasets.

She is collaborating with Rod Sturdivant of Azusa Pacific University and Ursula Wolz, Noyce Visiting Professor in Computer Science in spring 2017, now with Bennington College. David Lopatto, director of the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment, will help develop an assessment tool for the games.

This is Grinnell’s first grant from the IUSE program, which is relatively new, although many Grinnell faculty members, including Kuiper and Lopatto, previously have received funding from the NSF for pedagogical projects.

This project fits well with the College’s efforts, supported by a grant from the Roy J. Carver Trust, to develop a curriculum in data science.

The German Department at Grinnell College is happy to announce that it has received a grant from the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany to participate in the Campus Week campaign during fall semester 2017. The Campus Week program seeks to foster the friendship between Germany and the United States in American university and college campuses. This year’s topic is “Germany Making Choices.” In a series of events and in the classroom, we’ll learn about the German election and Germany’s role in European integration and global migration.

Schedule of Events

September 11-26: Exhibition (ARH 2nd Floor)

Starting on September 11, you will be able to visit the exhibition “Germany Making Choices.” This exhibition explains the German political and electoral systems.

September 24: German Election Party (1-3 p.m., ARH, Room 120)

Join the German Department to follow the election results live on TV. You will be able to participate in an interactive quiz challenge at 2 p.m. Three winners will receive a generous gift card from the Pioneer Bookstore. Visit the exhibition ahead of time, so you have all the knowledge necessary to win! And come on time, so you don’t miss your swag bag! Refreshments will be served.

Herbert L. Quelle, German Consul General in Chicago, will speak on the German elections and the role of the consulate in the Midwest. This event is co-sponsored by the Rosenfield Program in Foreign Affairs, International Relations, and Human Rights.

TBD: Film Screening (Strand Theatre)

Joins us to watch a free screening of We Are Young. We Are Strong (Burhan Qurbany, Germany, 2014). A discussion on the true story behind the movie and contemporary expressions of xenophobia in Germany will follow the show. You can watch the official trailer.

TBD: Visit to a German Company in Iowa

Students will visit a German company based in Iowa to gain first-hand experience of transatlantic trade and partnerships.

Gina Clayton is the recipient of the 2017 Grinnell College Innovator for Social Justice Prize. The attorney and activist founded and directs Essie Justice Group, a nonprofit, California-based organization that developed a nine-week Healing to Advocacy program. It’s built on the belief that those directly impacted by oppressive systems are the most effective change agents.

Approximately 50 women have graduated and been invited into the “Essie sisterhood,” the organization’s mobilization base. This year, Essie is building a statewide network dedicated to bringing about decriminalization, reducing incarceration and ending state-sponsored violence against women and communities of color.

During Grinnell Prize Week, Oct. 2–6, 2017, students, faculty, staff, and local residents will be able to interact with Clayton, learning her best practices to design, organize, and launch innovative programs to address social justice issues. The award ceremony will be held Oct. 3 at the College.

The Grinnell Prize, which began in 2011, awards $100,000 — $50,000 to the prizewinner and $50,000 to the prizewinner’s organization — to recognize efforts in social justice.